1. |
Secrets On My Pillow
04:48
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SECRETS ON MY PILLOW
Secrets on my pillow are the currency of love
The things that can't be said in daily conversation
Like coins in a fountain and hearts longing for a home
Secrets hold an answer for all who feel alone.
Secrets on my pillow are passports to release
Borders crossed in anger are crossed again in peace.
Like ripples in a fountain spreading wishes from the heart
Secrets hold the pieces for every broken part.
Secrets on my pillow are my tickets to ride
An unknown destination my lover by my side.
Like splashes in a fountain, and hopes whispered under breath
Secrets turn to nothing when nothing's left but death.
(with mild apologies to Julie Styne and Sammy Cahn, for the vague references to "Three Coins In A Fountain")
May 2015
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2. |
Drive On
06:05
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DRIVE ON
Riding along to the end of my road, dreaming as I drove, of the beginning
When the unborn me swam in the soft embrace of the water of life.
Steering a path through the ruts in my dreams and choosing a path round the potholes
I fought with the wheel to stay on the road and find the address where my future still waits.
Yet try as I might I can't recall the details of those early years
Of the stories I built to hide the truth of my unhappy launch into life.
As darkness fell, and the road passed beneath I spotted an odd looking house
The windows were shuttered, the garden a mess but something said go on, there's nothing to lose.
So on up the drive I went, knocked on the door
And waited for something to happen and
After a while, the door opened slowly; an old
Figure appeared I knew but couldn't name.
I stuttered my greeting, he listened so quiet,
And when I had finished he beckoned me close
Fainter than a whisper, louder than silence,
He said . . . . . drive on, drive on, drive on, drive on, drive on.
March 2017
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3. |
Wait And See
04:47
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WAIT AND SEE
I tried so hard to make it right
I wanted it to work
I needed instant outcomes
But all she said was Wait and see
It wasn't like I wanted much
But time was running out.
An answer would have done it
But all I heard was Wait and see
The problem wasn't hard to see
The answer not so clear
Talking would be a start
But then she'd have to Wait and see.
And in this game of wait and see.
She finally agreed
To try and see through my eyes
She asked if we could start again.
And all I could say
All I could say
All I could say was
Wait and see.
November 2014
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4. |
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WHAT BROUGHT US TO THIS PLACE?
I see it in your eyes, hear it in your voice, feel it in your anger.
That angry, angry quiet question: what brought you to this place?
You diggers,
You fellers,
You trappers,
Converters,
You charlatans
What have you come here for?
What will you do to get it?
You see it in my eyes, hear it in my voice, feel it in my anger.
I have my own angry questions: what brought us to this place?
We diggers,
We fellers,
We trappers,
Converters,
We charlatans
What have we come here for?
What are we going to do about it?
May 2003
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5. |
Solitary Man
04:53
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SOLITARY MAN
A solitary man with the world on his shoulders
Paints solitary thoughts on the canvas of his life.
A solitary man with no thought of how he got here
Drinks multiple volumes from his ever empty cup.
The rustle of the leaves falling on the crimson carpet,
The changing of the season bringing hope to the world.
My hope is that he hears or sees the coming of the Fall,
The season's change, dropping leaves in the new book.
A solitary man with all the right moves
Is lost in the flaws of his own perfection.
A solitary man with no plan for where he's going
Gets lost in his thoughts with no one else to care.
My hope is that he hears or sees the coming of the Fall,
The season's change, dropping leaves in the new book.
A solitary man bears the world on his shoulders,
Paints solitary thoughts as a record of his days.
My hope is that he hears or sees the coming of the Fall,
The season's change, dropping leaves in the new book.
September 2014
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6. |
After The Beguine
06:10
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AFTER THE BEGUINE
It's not the life they imagined when they began the beguine.
First holy women, then white ones, then in Paris a dance for slow fun
Now Hustle, Hard, and House, we dance to make the scene;
Keep up with the beat, be part of the crowd, and not get lost in between.
And so it goes in this crazy, crazy world;
Election hopefuls hit the screen
Keeping one eye on the left, the other on the right,
To not get caught in the space between.
So don't let them, don't let them begin the beguine
Until you know which story you're in.
Write the lyric, play the tune,
Sing your song; then begin the beguine.
How could we know what heaven this is
When all around us, all around us hell is routine.
So ignore borders, forget the hate, let go the anger
And let's not be caught, let's not be caught 'til after the beguine, after the beguine.
February 2017
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7. |
The Fifth Element
07:09
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THE FIFTH ELEMENT
Earth . . . . Water . . . . Fire . . . . Air
Farm the earth until it cannot bear fruit; sell the water 'til it turns to blood;
Stoke the fire until it burns the woodland; breathe the air until there is no more.
What we are missing is a fifth element that helps us all work together;
That pulls the other four as one; that makes us think of one another;
That forces those with power to give some up.
That fifth element . . . . . . is Respect. Respect is the fifth element.
Respect for one another; Respect for things we don't understand;
Respect for those who are different; Respect for those with other beliefs;
Respect for things we don't understand; Respect for those who are different;
Respect for those with other beliefs; And respect for those who have less.
Respect for the earth; Respect for the water; Respect for the fire; Respect for the air.
Respect . . . . . . . . the fifth element.
The fifth element; Respect.
December 2017
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8. |
Requiem For Sharon
06:51
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REQUIEM FOR SHARON
Black . . . . . mostly white band
Dreads . . . . not after chemo
Energy . . . . . just can't land
Movement . . . . . until the end.
When the music ended and the curtain came down
Where did you go? What did you leave?
Groove . . . . . . yes it's deep
Soul . . . . . . . it's still alive
James Brown . . . . . . . . don't you weep
Horns blow . . . . . . . . good jump 'n jive
We're bound for one last stop, all caught in one destiny
The cards are dealt; now our hands to play.
My hand . . . . . . . not perfect
Your hand . . . . . . . cancer
Both hands . . . . . . . . we played late
But yours . . . . . . . takes the pot
When the music ended and the curtain came down
Where did you go? What did you leave?
Where did you go? What did you take?
February 2017
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9. |
Love On The Highway
06:08
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LOVE ON THE HIGHWAY
The band was playing tough, tight like a ready slingshot.
And the guys at the bar were talking rough; the women dancing, temptingly hot.
Like love on the highway; was it meant to last?
Like love on the highway; was it just too fast?
Politicians say anything, hustling . . . . . as if we all have ears
For the promises of nothing or their sad attempts to shame their peers
Like love on the highway; were they meant to last?
Like love on the highway; are they just too fast?
Businessmen exchange consolidated plans
To widen the gap and strengthen their hands; and
The guys at the bar with sorrows to drown
With women who dance until the next shutdown.
Like love on the highway; are they going to last?
Like love on the highway; will they fail as fast?
Like love on the highway; like love on the highway
The band is done and medicated while some girls wait in the doorway
And the guys at the bar are wasted: no love tonight on the highway.
No love tonight on the highway.
Like love on the highway.
Love on the highway
March 2016
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10. |
Isn't That Cool?
05:23
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ISN’T THAT COOL?
I’m a little older than you
And I know lots of things you don’t.
And one of them is that you know
More and more and more than I do. Isn’t that cool!?
I'm a little wiser than you
And I've seen lots of things you haven't, yet
And one of them is that you see
More and more and more than I can. Isn’t that cool!?
Young people these days are not like in my day
That's the message we heard, the one we passed on
But poverty and war are the crops we have sown.
And young folk these days are the seeds of our hope.
I'm a little happier than you
For I'll be gone before too long
And I'm a little sadder than you
For I won't see what you do
No I won't see what you do, but . . . . . . . . Isn’t that cool!?
October 2014
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11. |
Bound For Oblivion
05:26
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BOUND FOR OBLIVION
I see you, I hear you, I sense you, even touch you
Who are you, where did you come from?
You're everywhere, you're legion
You seek food, beg a fare
You live in mud, dust, in shadows, cold
You sidewalk sleep, grateful for the central heating on the downtown floor.
And we; do we even touch our senses?
Do we know who we are, and where we're going?
It's me and you, it's us and them; it's House & Garden, it's tarp and park.
Who are you? Where did you come from? Who am I? Where am I going?
You empty your life on the counter; old tickets, past trips, none for the future;
Worn business cards; are you longing to belong? You bump me, an accident and you say sorry!
But server more concerned about me, as if you don't exist.
It's me and you, it's us and them; it's House & Garden, it's tarp and park. And
Who are you? Where did you come from; who are we? Where are we all going?
We're bound for the end of the line! We're bound for the last stop!
We're bound for journey's end! We're bound for oblivion!
December 2013
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webbster Toronto, Ontario
I was in a band in the UK when I was 18 - that would be 1964 when popular music that we see now was getting going strong. Subsequent years of musical inactivity ended 15 years ago and the idea of putting out my own music grew. Four years ago I put out a 4-track EP, "Passing Through", on my 70th birthday and have been working hard ever since to get "Destiny" out of my hands. Here it is!! ... more
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